Here We Go Again
by TheTrio.SI
Summary: Multiple OCs. As you might have guessed from the title, hopefully. LE GASP! It's a self-insert! Life's great until you get thrown into a video game. T for swearing, of course.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N**: Hello. I should be shot for this… really. Anyway, do you all remember On Silver Wings? Yep, that story that sucked. This is an entirely different story because my initial plot bunny ran away and committed suicide. Tragic, I know.

**Lance:** So tragic, you died too.

**Me:** I didn't ask for your opinion. /sigh/ Enough ranting. I bring you this newly re-written self insert of mine. Here we go again! /pun not intended.

**Disclaimer: This is a one time disclaimer, if you do not read it, it will not be my fault. As the summary states, there will be MULTIPLE OCs in this self insert. If you, as a reader, hate OCs for whatever reason you have, do not read. Read this warning very clearly. Thank you. Now move on and enjoy the story. Also, Tales of Symphonia will never, _ever_ belong to me.**

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><p>Dark clouds seeped into the scenery from outside my room's window, the trees rustling quietly. It was nearly eleven at night.<p>

I typed away at my computer, chatting with my best friend. Our conversation had taken many drastic turns. From discussing horrible Chemistry, to fangirling over the various anime and video games, to fan fiction.

'Speaking of fan fiction…' I typed in the chatbox.

'Yeah? What about it? Did you manage to get that new chapter written for your self insert?' She replied seconds later.

'Actually…' I hesitated, before continuing, 'I was going to delete it.'

No reply.

'… KT, are you there?'

'Wait.' She replied. 'Why? You can't leave me and YJTC stranded in the middle of nowhere! We barely started!'

I sighed. This is gonna be one long conversation… 'I know. But compared to you and YJTC, my writing skills suck. I mean, seriously. I barely score as much as you for English.'

'That's not the point.'

'It is! I just don't have good plot ideas to carry on a story of that magnitude.' I sighed again. I really didn't know how else to tell my best friend why I'd quit the job.

'Well… if you must.'

I looked up at the screen to see her reply. Wait, since when was I looking down? '… What?'

She went offline.

"God dammit…" I muttered to myself. I hope she isn't mad at me. Things hadn't gone the way it was supposed to go. Actually, I had no idea what had happened.

I walked out of my room to the living room, where my beloved gaming consoles were. I flipped through my stock of games. Should I play the Wii? Nah, too much hand movements. Xbox 360? The only other game that I owned besides Tales of Vesperia was BlazBlue, and I had no idea how to play fighting games. I walked over to my neglected PlayStation 2. "Hm…"

Flipping through the game CDs, I finally decided on one particular game.

Tales of Symphonia.

Well, being a huge gigantic ass fan of the 'Tales of' series, I had to live with the Japanese version of Tales of Symphonia because I don't have a GameCube. How stupid is that? I took out the Tales of Destiny 2 CD that was in my PlayStation 2 system and replaced it with Tales of Symphonia. Tales of Destiny 2? Hm… maybe I'll get back to that later.

The game started up, and the opening rolled in. Sure, I preferred Starry Heavens to this… but eh. Minor difference. The menu popped up, and I loaded my only save file which I completed a few months back. Gosh, that feels pathetic… I mean, other people have finished it a million times and I barely finished one playthrough.

Mithos was a pain in the ass. What could I do?

No, I couldn't free run.

It took me to the grade shop. "Huh, not much grade…" Well yeah, all I did was spam Lloyd's Sword Rain techs over and over again. The only thing I could keep which wasn't minor (items and such) was my Arte count.

… That IS pathetic.

Oh well.

I clicked the O button and the real opening of the game begun. Kratos speaking. Mm. I liked the man. Well, in a fangirl way, not a creepy pixel stalker way. That's two different things.

The lights in the house suddenly flickered on and off.

"Holy mothe-"

And the lights went off.

The sky was pitch black, the trees ceased their whispering, and not even the stars shone under the dark blanket.

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><p>"Ow…" My head felt funny. What the hell happened? I knew there was a blackout in the house but…<p>

Wait.

My house doesn't have…

Oh god. Where the HELL am I?

Blue swirly spheres and green lights littered my surroundings. It felt like warmth, for some reason.

"Hello there."

"W-wah!" I jumped at the voice that sounded from behind me. My eyes scanned the person in front of me briefly.

Blue-turquoise hair tied in a loose ponytail, black chained hoodie, striped grey shirt, skinny jeans, sneakers…

"Who the hell are you?" Was my first reaction.

"Would you rather know where you are or who am I?" He replied casually, silver-grey eyes reflecting in the green glow. His voice is strangely very feminine. Well, it's not that bad…

"Why not both?"

"Nah, you need to pick one."

"Fine." I pondered the question. If I found out who he is, it wouldn't be of use to me. Well, I could ask him where I am after that… "Where am I?"

"Good choice," He hummed, "You're in Triet."

"Huh. Triet? What kind of name is—"

Wait. Did he just say Triet?

"Technically, you're in your Exsphere."

Okay, that did NOT sound good.

His voice cut through my thoughts. "Look, just don't freak out, okay? You're going to wake up soon."

Huh? Wake up? This is bad, I don't even know what's going on!

"Wait!" I called out, but soon darkness engulfed me once more. The warmth of the blue and green lights no longer lingered around me.

I felt cold.

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><p>"She's coming to!"<p>

"Ugh…"

I groggily opened my eyes… and then I nearly got a heart attack when I found five pair of all too familiar eyes on me.

… Shit.

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><p><em>Love it? Hate it? Leave a review and tell me what you think!<em>


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N**: Second chapter is here! Well… if you've made it past the first chapter, please stick with me throughout this story! The plot's a bit slow moving at this point, but I promise it'll be interesting!

**DanteShindo: ToV and Blazblue are awesome. c: Also, I'll keep in mind your offer! Thanks for reviewing!**

**WhyJayTeeSee: Your suggestion is much appreciated! I'll work on it!**

**Needles of Rain: Here you go! The second chapter! Thanks for your review!  
><strong>

Thank you so much for your reviews! Keep 'em coming! It makes me warm and fuzzy inside and makes me want to update faster. All three of you who reviewed get Genis' awesome cookies!

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><p>My first reaction was the back away. And then I realized I was on a bed in a room at Triet's inn. The joy. How did I end up in the inn anyway?<p>

I bumped into the board thing at the back of the bed. "Ow."

"Who are you?"

Hey… it's that voice! Hmm… "Give me your name and I'll give you mine."

"Wha… that's my line!"

Woops, wrong move. "I don't see your name on it," I shrugged. I have a feeling that Lloyd might hate me for life at the rate I'm going with this conversation.

"… Why you… !"

I felt some sort of wood connect with my skull which had a shrieking crack sound to it. It definitely wasn't my stupidity that caused it…

"Ow…" I brought a hand up to my head.

Lloyd snickered evilly at me. I threw him my not-so-threatening-but-I-tried-my-best glare, before I saw the woman in orange walk over to him and hit the brunet with her staff as well.

Gotta love Raine.

"What was that for?" He exclaimed while nursing the little bump on his head.

"You're both acting like children." She turned to glare at me, "And we don't even know you yet."

"I tried to introduce myself. Blame the kid in red over there."

"Hey! I'm no kid!" Lloyd retorted, "You look barely 16! _You're_ the kid here!"

We both heard someone drawing their sword, and the next thing I knew, said sword's tip was at my throat. The sword's owner had a menacing wine-red glare that could kill puppies. Literally.

"Um… Mr. Kratos, please put away your sword…"

The man in question glared at me again before complying to the timid voice, which apparently saved my life. Not that I was particularly looking forward to who that voice belonged to.

I sat on the bed. The rest of them stood.

Silence.

Until the little silver-haired boy stifled a yawn.

Raine looked over at her younger brother before shifting her gaze back to me. "We'll talk in the morning. We need to rest."

"… O-okay." I said lamely.

The auburn-haired male was the first to leave the room, followed by Lloyd, who turned to glare at me before stalking off.

The girl with the timid voice gave me a small smile before she left for her room.

… and that left Raine and Genis with me.

Raine sighed. "You'll have to get out."

My eyes widened slightly, before I realized that this room is Raine's room.

I quickly jumped off the bed and muttered a quick 'sorry' before I left the room.

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><p>Wow, that was an interesting conversation. Also, I didn't handle that very well. What a way to make a first impression. I feel like kicking myself. Then again, I blame my terrible social skills.<p>

I left the inn, seeing as I don't have any money on me. I didn't wander very far from the inn before I found a wooden stable looking thing. Well, it looks like I could stay there for the night…

I plopped onto the soft sand, and took this time to adjust to my surroundings.

Sand.

That's all I saw.

… Sand.

It reminded me of Chesedonia. You know… that desert town in Tales of the Aby—Wait a minute, I'm in Symphonia, not Abyss. Why am I making references to Abyss?

There were little tents that were set up, tables with a cloth over the goods. Further up north was a little oasis, next to it is probably that fortune teller tent… Hm… Isn't that what Lloyd and the others used to check friendship lev—

"Hello there."

I jumped, for the second time that day. "You need to get a life, whoever you are."

I looked clearly at the person in front of me before I realized…

"It's YOU!"

He did a hairflick, the desert wind exaggerating the effect, "Of course it's _me_. Who else would it be?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Seriously?"

"Okay, okay," he dropped the act and his tone turned serious, "There are some things I can't explain now but—"

"Like how I got here?"

"Let me finish!" He growled.

I clamped my mouth shut after that. Some self restraint on my mouth would do me a lot of good, I realised.

"Okay, you know how it goes," he begins, "You know you're in Tales of Symphonia, supposedly a video game back on earth. But you're here now, stuck in that very same video game!" He did a little dramatic pose.

Did I mention that this guy totally freaks the shit out of me in every way possible?

No? Well, now you do.

"It's a self-insert, by the way. But I figured that you would've figured out by now, seeing as you were once working on one before you told Kana you were going to—"

Kana?

He knows Kana?

"Hold it." I asked, "How come you know Kana?"

The man's face scrunched up a bit… if you could call it that. Immediately after that, he facepalmed.

"Shit."

"… Huh?" I asked, out of curiosity. Usually when someone goes 'shit' or 'fuck' or some other swear word which I cannot think of right now, everyone knows we're in trouble…

Apparently not this time.

"I wasn't supposed to tell you that," He shrugged, "I guess it slipped."

I was confused. Tell me what, exactly? That he knew Kana? "You didn't actually tell me anything, mister. Besides the fact that you let Kana's name slip." I said slowly.

"Mister? _Mister_? I'll have you know that I'm not as old as you think I am!"

I was taken aback. This guy has serious mood swing issues… _serious_ issues. This is getting really off-topic now.

"Yeah… mister. You have a problem with me calling you that?" I asked innocently.

"As a matter of fact, I do." He huffed, "I'm 18. No one calls me mister."

"I'm sorry, _sir_. I don't happen to know your name yet."

He opened his mouth, then closed it, before he opened it again and said, "… You have a very good point there."

I rolled my eyes at him. In reply, he rolled his eyes at me too.

"So, what's your name?"

… Something tells me that this is going to be a long night.

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><p><em>Well, its time for your to review! Now go!<em>


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N**: Hey there. Chapter 3 is here. I hate this chapter. Dunno, I felt like it didn't flow very well... So guys, just review. And be gentle with the flames if you must.

**Needles of Rain: Haha, nah. If that was Yuan, maybe it'd be a bit too OOC for him? xD Yeah, I figured the Lloyd-line-stealing thing was too common but I couldn't figure out any other way at that time. Haha. Thanks for the review!**

**AnnaADDICTED: Here's the third chapter for you! Thank you so much for the review!**

**kari90: Glad you like it! ^-^ Hope you stick around for more~**

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><p>"My name?" His silvery grey eyes had a playful glint to it.<p>

"… Well, yeah. Your name."

I didn't have anything else to say, due to the fact that my brain kind of shut off on me at that moment.

"Guess a letter, then."

I stared at him in disbelief. If I could, my jaw would've hit the sand by now. "You have GOT to be kidding me."

He smiled a crooked smile. "There's nothing wrong in playing hangman, right?"

"In the middle of the night? Seriously?"

This guy's kind of insane. Unless you already knew that then… nevermind.

"Yeah." He said, sounding a bit impatient, "now guess a letter."

"Or do you want to draw blanks in the sand so I at least know how many letters your name has?" I said matter-of-factly.

He looked at me again. I noticed that I couldn't stop staring at his eyes. I mean… they were a pretty weird colour, but it's pretty. And they look really, _really_ familiar.

"I know my eyes are pretty."

Now it was my turn to look at him. "What?"

He looked at his nails, slightly bored. "You kind of _did_ create me, by the way."

"Uh-huh…" I nodded slowly, "and how does that make sense?"

He sighed and took out a mirror. "See for yourself."

Curious, I took the mirror from his slender fingers and looked into it—

"Holy mother."

He made an audible click with his tongue. "Bingo."

Charcoal eyes stared back at me; turquoise-green hair framed the face in the mirror. I looked at the man in front of me again, noticing that he had turquoise hair too, with the blue hue standing out a bit more than the green. I could literally feel the gears in my brain finally click.

"You… are my OC?" I said, mirror still in my hand.

"You are your own OC too." He chimed. "Can I have my mirror back?"

I really, really needed to face-palm. I sighed and sat back down at my spot on the sand. Why… why do I look different? Why...? I shook my head slightly, pushing all unanswered questions to the back of my mind for now.

"Are you sure your hair's turquoise and not red?" I teased lightly.

He snorted playfully, "Yeah, it is. Are you jealous?"

I opened my mouth to say something, but his eyes narrowed while he said in a sing-song voice, "Good morning, Kratos."

Huh?

I looked up from where I was sitting to see said man a little ways in front of me… or us.

"Good morning." He replied in his usual monotonous voice. He angled his crimson orbs to look at me.

"… What?" I shot back in an attempt to defend myself.

He 'hmphed' and closed his eyes, "You cannot fool me, girl. Don't think I don't know why you came here."

I widened my eyes. "Hey, look here. I don't know why the hell I'm here in the first place. Person over there—" I pointed an accusing finger at the turquoise-haired man, "—hasn't told me anything yet."

Kratos turned to face me, his auburn hair flowing gently in the night desert breeze. "You mean your exsphere?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, that's me." The slender man smiled. "You may not see me, but you can definitely sense my presence, no?"

He grunted, walked away, and said nothing more.

"… Lance." I finally said his name, though a little hesitant. When he turned his head slightly to acknowledge it, I asked, "What are you and Kratos talking about?"

Lance smiled a broad smile. "Nothing you should worry about."

I frowned.

"You're avoiding the question."

"And it happens to be my main intention." He smiled again, but this time it's a sad one. "You'll understand as you go along, okay?"

I looked at him again, pleading. "Why not now?"

"Because—"

Lance was cut off mid-sentence when we both heard footsteps from the direction of the inn and the metallic sound of a blade being drawn.

"Woah!"

We heard Kratos sigh and put his blade back in its scabbard, "Lloyd… I'm sorry to have startled you."

The brunet huffed slightly, "…Startled… isn't really the word for it."

"You'd best not stand behind me." The older of the two warned.

Lloyd merely shrugged, "I won't."

"Whine!"

All four of us turned to locate the sound, but it was probably Noishe. That reminds me, wasn't he (it?) supposed to be where I was now? The stables, I mean. Weird.

"Noishe!" I heard Lloyd call the protozoan's name.

He padded towards Lloyd, and then looked at Kratos for a while. The auburn-haired man's lips curled into a small smile which disappeared as soon as it came.

"Do you like animals?" Lloyd asked.

Kratos shook his head, "No… not particularly."

The green-white protozoan walked up to Kratos. The man brought his gloved hand up to pat Noishe's head.

"Well," Lloyd started, smiling, "Noishe seems quite comfortable with you. He usually doesn't like strangers."

Ah, so it's a he.

"I once had a pet… long ago…" Kratos mused.

Lloyd looked surprised. "Really?"

"Lloyd…"

"… Wh-what?" The red-clad swordsman said, "What are you staring at me like that for?"

"Your swordsmanship is unrefined," Kratos scolded, "You should focus a little more on eliminating your vulnerabilities."

Wow, way to kill the moment.

He walked towards the inn, glaring at me as he did. Seriously, what is wrong with him? I can barely put a scratch on him even if I tried, plus the fact that I'll be too giggly to do any harm to him in the first place.

The purple-clad man turned his head back to face Lloyd, "… That is, if you care about your life." And then he stalked off to the inn.

Lloyd growled at the space in front of him where the older man once stood, "Just because he's a little better than me, he has to talk like he knows everything!"

Lance snickered, "Well, maybe because he does."

"Shh!" I put a finger to my lips, "Shut up, Lance."

He shrugged, "It's not like he can sense me."

"Hey," Lloyd's voice cut through our conversation, "You're from just now. Mind if I join you?"

I shrugged and patted the ground, "Sure, there's space."

"I'm sorry about earlier," he scratched his head sheepishly.

"It's fine, don't worry about it."

We sat in silence for a while. I couldn't sense Lance's presence anymore, probably went back into his exsphere. I felt pretty lost without him, to be completely honest. I mean, the first thing you wake up to is a totally different world from where you've live in for your entire life, someone tried to kill you, and you get threatened by said someone.

"So…" The brunet broke the settling silence, "What happened back there?"

I looked at him, dumbfounded, "Back… where?"

"You don't remember?" He tilted his head to the side, "We found you at the Desian base near Triet."

"… Huh?"

My mood immediately dampened. First I wake up in Triet, now Lloyd tells me he found me in a Renegade base?

"Well yeah," Lloyd said, "that's where we found you."

"… If you found me there," I did a little hand gesture to emphasize my point, "how did I end up here?"

"I carried you back."

I looked at Lloyd for a moment, and then averted my eyes to the sand, feeling the blood rush up to my face. "I-I'm sorry."

He laughed slightly, "What are you apologizing for?"

"I… don't know." I finished lamely. No, I really didn't know why I said that. This is so awkward. _Damn hormones_.

He stared at me like I was some kind of mutated thing that came out of nowhere. "… What?"

A soft sigh escaped my lips, "… never mind. Tell me what happened?"

"Well, a lot had happened." He started, "like, a lot."

"I wouldn't know how much 'a lot' is if you don't tell me."

He glared at me but softened his gaze after a couple of seconds. "Shut up."

"So, begin."

"Now you're starting to sound like Raine."

"Well…" I rolled my eyes, "I'm sorry. Go on."

"Okay. Well uh…" He stuttered, "… where should I begin…"

"From the beginning."

"I know that!" He snapped.

I shut up then, not trusting myself to open my mouth anymore. Too much obnoxiousness won't get me anywhere, it seems. I'm in a terrible position.

Lloyd cleared his throat, "Okay, well, it's pretty humiliating and stuff but… I kind of got kidnapped. By the Desians, I mean."

I raised an eyebrow.

"Don't look at me like that!" He grumbled. "Well, yeah. Then I managed to get out and stuff, got through a lot of weird machine controlled places amongst other things. Seriously, I mean, why build a base which is so complicated to navigate through anyway?"

"Because." I said simply.

"Because?" He asked.

"Yes, because." I said again, "If they don't make it complicated, you'd have gotten out much faster, which I don't think is their plan for you to escape in the first place."

Lloyd looked at me before raising his gloved hand to sheepishly rub the back of his neck. "You've got a point there. But then again, they must have a horrible time getting from place to place."

"Not really." I said in response. "I mean, they built it. Why won't they be able to navigate through it?"

The twin swordsman reached a dead end. "Why are we having this conversation again?"

Cue your awkward silence and wind blowing through the scene. With dust instead of leaves.

"I dunno." I shrugged. "You were telling me how retarded the Desians were."

"Oh yeah."

Sigh.

"Anyway," he continued. "I got caught on the way. Well, I was almost out of it, I guess. And then I ran into this office looking room thinking I was okay, and then—"

"You met with the leader."

And after that, I mentally slapped myself.

He looked at me suspiciously, "How do you know?"

"Uh…" Panic attack panic attack what do I do what do I do oh no oh no I'm gonna die I'm gonna die, "Just a guess. You didn't… did you?"

"… I did."

Awkward silence, take two.

"… Oh."

"But he was a total moron actually." Lloyd laughed. I relaxed a bit. "But his lightning-crackling-spell-gathering-in-his-hand thing was kinda scary."

While I recovered from post-shock, I mentally scolded myself. I should learn how to keep my mouth shut. Poor Yuan, though. No wonder he hates Lloyd. Either that or it's because he's Kratos' son and stuff and I'm rambling again.

"Then his subordinate came in with a few lackeys with you in tow."

I looked at him. "That's actually quite disturbing."

"No kidding." He frowned at the memory. "I don't even know how that happened. The leader tried to escape and then Genis, Colette, Raine and Kratos busted in. Something really weird happened when you regained consciousness. You suddenly stood up and your eyes were weird and gray and empty-looking."

I frowned slightly. "My eyes _are_ gray. I'm not too sure about the empty-looking thing though. Geez, you're scaring me."

"Says you." He retorted. "You scared the shit out of me back there."

Things aren't looking good. Where's that son of a…

"You suddenly stood up and then you wanted us to fight you and Kratos had this weird look on his face like he just heard some sort of horrible screeching then we fought and you casted Black Hole which destroyed the entire place and I don't actually know what else happened."

He took a moment to breathe.

"You could have breathed in between, you know." I told him. "… but wow… it's hard to believe…"

No shit right. I've got so many things to ask Lance. Or anyone. Like, why am I here? Why did I appear in the image of my OC? How did Yuan's soldiers find me? What really happened back there? Why _me_?

"I don't know how that all happened," He said slowly this time. "But it did."

"Seems like it," I said quietly, "Thanks for telling me."

I am so confused at this point.

He yawned. "No problem. You should probably get some rest. Don't you have anywhere to go?"

"I don't, actually. I was wondering if I could travel with you guys, get me back some memories." I smiled mirthlessly, trying to convince Lloyd that I was actually harmless. "Amongst other things."

"You could, I suppose. We'll talk in the morning."

"Good night." I nodded.

He nodded back and made his way back to the inn, closing the door behind him with a soft click.

I let out a long sigh. Noishe padded towards me and whined a little, like he understood what I was feeling. I patted his head and my lips curled up in a little smile. "Hello, Noishe."

I don't know why he likes me so much. Weird creature.

He yipped in response, and then he turned his head back to look at a man standing just behind him.

"Enlightening conversation, no?" Lance smirked.

"It wasn't that bad. He did miss a few details though."

Lance's eyes softened. "It's because he doesn't know." He walked over to Noishe and gave him a pat on the head as well. The green-white protozoan whimpered and backed away from the man.

"Then why don't you fill it in?" I asked.

"Nah." He flicked his wrist. "It's not that important."

Sure, it's not _that_ important. I rolled my eyes.

"Get some rest if you plan on joining them for the walk to the Seal of Fire tomorrow," Lance said. "Half the night's nearly gone."

"Don't make it sound like it's a field trip. I'm going to die out there somehow." I don't even know how to defend myself. Go to the Seal of Fire with Lloyd and his group? I'd die the minute I step out of town.

The man smiled. "Everything will be fine. Trust me."

I stifled a yawn. "Okay, you can stop talking to me now. I want my sleep."

He nodded and walked off to Martel knows where. Somewhere, I suppose.

…

I was asleep for a long time on the grainy sand before the protozoan returned and propped my head up on his soft fur. I unconsciously cuddled closer to the source of warmth as the cold desert wind blew through the silent night.

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><p><em>The end of the chapter already? Time to review!<em>


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:** **So here's chapter five. I hope I haven't bored some of you yet. I do feel like I have though, seeing as I only got two reviews...  
><strong>

**Lance: Alright, here we go, she's going into depression right now. Quick, more people review this story before she cuts away all my beautiful hair! /panics  
><strong>

**Me: Shut up. /grumbles How the hell did you get here in the first place?**

**... Anyway, cookies for all who reviewed! Unless you want something different. Ask and you shall receive.**

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><p>I had a dreamless night, or the lack of it.<p>

Stars, trees, buildings… my room. Everything that has happened so far all felt so surreal, so dreamlike. But seeing Lance… _myself_ even, in this state, I doubt that it's just gonna be some clichéd event taking place in my life. Ah, 'tis life.

I woke up with a nudge to my face. Opening my sleepy eyes, my face met with a wet tongue.

"Gah. Noishe." I groaned, and lightly petted the white-green creature. He whined and made something like a happy face. Adorable thing.

"Good morning."

"Oh hey," I turned to my right, noticing that the gang had gotten up early. Even Lloyd. That's something you don't see everyday.

"So, let's start with introductions, cleanly." The professor said, giving both Lloyd and I her evil glare. I bet her glare kills puppies too.

I stood up and dusted the sand off my clothes, "… Um, hi. I'm Lene," I waved slightly, "Um, you pronounce it 'Leh-n'. Lene Solire. It's nice to meet all of you." I just noticed that I had an issue with people mispronouncing her name back home on Earth, so I thought I'd make it clear to everyone. In case, you know, my horrible attitude does not garner me a place within this jolly band of travelers.

The dual swordsman extended a hand and I shook it, "Lloyd Irving."

"Hello! I'm Colette Brunel, the next Chosen!" She gave a bright smile.

"Raine Sage," the woman in orange nodded, and then turned to the younger boy, "this is my brother, Genis."

"Nice to meet you." He greeted.

I returned his smile, and waited for the evil porcupine.

"… Kratos."

"… Hello."

Stay calm, stay calm, stay calm. Don't fangirl.

They all kind of looked at me warily, all except Lloyd and Colette. Well, I don't blame them… not after what Lloyd had told me the night before.

"I spoke with Lene last night," Lloyd started, "and I thought that maybe she could join us!"

"No."

Everyone turned to stare at the purple-clad mercenary.

"But why not, Kratos?"

"She will only be a burden to us," his stern baritone rang clearly, "if she cannot fend for herself, she's better off staying here."

"Don't worry, Kratos," a familiar voice spoke, but only the mercenary and I could hear him, "I'll keep her safe."

I glanced sideways to see Lance standing slightly in front of me. He glared. I sighed. This is _such_ an interesting conversation. Someone please tell me again why I'm in this situation…

"But the more the merrier, right?" Colette's cheery voice broke through the awkward silence that was settling in.

The man sighed, "… If the Chosen wishes it, then I have no objections."

Way to go, Kratos.

"Thank you." I smiled as gratefully as I could at Colette. You have no idea how much I want to kill her, but I can't. Bah.

"We can finally head out to release the seal," Kratos said, slightly irritated with what had happened a while ago.

Colette cheered and lightened up the general mood significantly. "Yes, I'll do my best!"

"The seal Remiel spoke of is at the Triet Ruins southwest of here," said the professor.

The red-clad swordsman pumped his fist in the air, "Cool! Let's go check out that seal!"

Genis and I sighed. "We'll see if that enthusiasm lasts…" The little silver-haired munchkin grumbled.

"I'd say five minutes. Give or take a few minutes." I snickered.

"Hm, we'll see."

"I'll be fine!" Lloyd retorted, "Just you watch!"

I'm watchin', Lloyd. I'm watchin'.

Kratos' visible eye twitched, "We should get going."

Impatient old man, isn't he. So much for being four thousand years old with the attention span of a three year old. Then again, I can't really blame him, can I? What with doing this Regeneration journey his entire life. That, and my inner fangirl. I need to shut her up.

"You know, maybe it would help if you would stop having long monologues to yourself." Lance noted.

I grumbled at him, "Or maybe you should leave me and my mind alone."

"I love you, too."

* * *

><p>So we sent out for the ruins for not more than an hour before I started sweating like I've never sweated before. No, seriously, the heat here is so, so horrible. Not even Singapore's constant blazing heat can match this desert's scorching hell.<p>

"If I die here, I'd like to say that I'm glad to have met all of you."

"Lene, you're not dying yet." Genis glared.

"I sure as hell feel as if I am."

Genis proceeded to ignore me. Gosh, what's up with these people? The rest of them seemed to not have noticed our little conversation. Oh well… there's only one other person to talk to then.

"I am _not_ going to entertain you."

I smiled, "Oh yes you are."

Lance groaned loudly, "Hi."

"Why not tell me a little bit about yourself?" I asked.

"This is not an interview session, you know." He grumbled. Grumpy young lad. He's worse than Kratos, for Martel's sake.

"Honestly," he said, so soft that only I could hear, "I can't, because Kratos can hear."

I made a little 'o' with my mouth, then slapped myself mentally. Kratos has angelic hearing. Why didn't I remember that? "… I see. I'm sorry then."

He laughed a little, "Nah, s'not your fault. It's how this self-insert is gonna work, anyway."

My lips curled slightly into a little smile. Lance _is_ a nice guy. He just has a bit too large an ego for his own good.

"I heard that!" He growled and folded his arms.

"No one asked you to read my mind."

"… is it just me, or do you enjoy talking to yourself a lot?" Lloyd asked me.

"Yeah, it's a bad habit of mine." I smirked a teeny bit too insanely at him.

"Um, okay. I'll… leave you alone now." He backed away and caught up to walk next to Colette. They're such an adorable pair.

But with my irrational fangirl, she'd rather have him and Zelos together. Mhmm. Good times back on Earth reading fan fiction.

"Good cover-up." Lance nodded.

I shrugged, "I _do_ talk to myself a lot. Just that they go onto this little book of mine."

Lance raised an eyebrow and his face was probably like a "D:" face. "… Ooookay."

We talked for a while more about the most trivial of things throughout our nearly four hour walk to the ruins. I heard the seraph heave an irritated sigh behind us.

* * *

><p>"Ah, so hot… man, I'm beat…"<p>

"See? You're already worn out." Genis rolled his eyes at Lloyd, sighing.

"I hate, and am _sick_, of this freaking desert," I frowned.

"Whine…"

Noishe? When did he get here?

"What's wrong, Noishe?" Lloyd asks. If Noishe is whining, there will be monsters. I mean, it's probably the only reason Noishe would be scared, right? Ever since that incident with Anna…

I snapped back into reality when I heard the monsters approach and Kratos' harsh command, "Be on your guard, there are enemies about."

No shit, Sherlock.

Two Fire Elements approached us along with several sidewinders. I pulled out both of my daggers and took on a sidewinder. Did I mention my apparent fear for snakes? I prayed very hard to Martel that I wouldn't die here. Not here of all places to die.

"You are not going to die, idiot. I'm here." Lance stood next to me.

The sidewinder locked its eyes with me, and lunged. I ran. As fast as I could. No no no no I don't want to die!

"Well then, HELP ME!"

"Coming, coming…" Lanced sighed. He teleported to my side (I realized that he can do a lot of inhumane things like teleport around and disappear into nothingness. This ain't no Maple Story, man) and took hold of both my hands. "Hang on."

He swung my arms and I spun around in a three hundred and sixty turn, sending the snake flying a few feet away from me.

"Woah," I said, panting, "Is that an arte?"

"Yep," he said, "Falling Leaf. Or unless there are leaves around, you can utilize the leaves as throwing knives."

I rushed back to finish off the sidewinder with Lance at my side. He took my hand again, and guided me through my attack pattern, and the snake went down after the fifth hit. I'm starting to get a hang of this killing-to-stay-alive thing pretty okay-ish…

Lloyd teamed up with Colette and Genis as they took down the rest of the sidewinders. Kratos unleashed a Demon Fang and deftly took care of the remaining monsters.

"This is going to be a nuisance…" I heard the auburn-haired man mutter. Here comes defensive training, hooray!

Not.

"What is?" Lloyd asked dumbly. The poor idiot…

"…Nothing." He glanced at all five of us before saying, "Anyway, it would be a good idea for you to learn techniques to protect yourself."

Yep, it's our defensive bubble of mana.

"While it exists in many different forms…"

I tuned out the rest of the explanation, only catching the method of using Guardian. "Lene," I heard him call my name, "Your turn."

I nodded slowly as I gripped my daggers and held it in front of me in an 'X' shape, and concentrated on 'grabbing' enough mana to execute the skill, and what do you know, it works. I noticed a faint smirk on the mercenary's face before he turned back to the rest of us. "Good, it seems you've all got it."

"Hmm," Rained wondered aloud, "what happened to Noishe?"

I looked around for the green and white protozoan. "You're right, he's gone…"

* * *

><p>Leaving the protozoan alone, we approached… the seal. Oh the joy. Triet Ruins? Hooray for Ruin Mode! I thought of Raine's theme song in my head and Lance sighed.<p>

The ruin entrance was covered by that plastic slab. "Say, is this the seal?" Colette asked. It _is_ the seal, Colette, how much more obvious must it be if your family's crest is on it?

Our attention went to Raine as she moaned, "Fantastic! Look at this slab covering the entrance!" She dropped to the floor and touched the slab. "It's clearly of a different composition than the surrounding stone!" Her eyes sparkled, literally, as she placed a hand on her chin and laughed a second later, "Hahahaha! It's just as I thought! This is polycarbonate, developed during the Ancient War to defend against magic!"

She began stroking the stone, "Oh, feel the smooth surface! It's wondrous!"

Now don't get me wrong, but it is slightly— more like, very disturbing— to see Raine, a grown woman in her twenties, being reduced to a pile of mush. Over several pieces of rock.

"Dear, if she heard that, you are going to die." Lance half snickered, half spoke.

Kratos cut into our conversation, "…Is she always like this?"

Genis felt uncomfortable, his eyes darting nervously to anywhere but us.

"Is she?" Both Lloyd and I asked in unison.

The silver-haired elf gave in, "… I've been trying so hard to hide it, too…"

Rained noticed the pedestal at the side and rose to take a look at it, "Hmm… this depression, it reads 'oracle stone'…" She then turned to the Chosen who was standing next to her. "Colette, place your hand here, it should reveal the entrance."

"Really?" Lloyd asked. I had to resist the urge to smack him, how stupid can he be? Then again, this _is_ Lloyd Irving we're talking about.

"This stone is enchanted with magic designed to identify the Chosen. There's no doubt about it." Raine nodded, apparently still in her Ruin Mode.

Colette placed her hand on the stone and after a brief rumbling and slight ground shaking, the slab slid away, revealing the staircase leading down into the seal.

"Okay! Now it's getting exciting, let's hurry up and go inside!" Lloyd cheered.

"… I hope you'll be able to maintain that enthusiasm." Kratos sighed.

Yes, Kratos, let's see how long your son's enthusiasm lasts.

Though I doubt it would last until the reappearance of Remiel. I have the urge to punch him in the face just thinking about him.

The ruins looked exactly like they were. The dimly lit hallways and the unlit torches. Ugh, that means puzzles to solve, and let me tell you that I hate this part of every role playing game that I've played out there. This is the reason why I never get around doing more playthroughs for this game.

We went around lighting the torches and raising pathways and killing monsters. I've pretty much gotten used to my daggers somewhat and running around to save my life, so it's all good.

I hope.

Sooner or later, we were in front of the warp panel to get us to the seal. I've never really understood how they work. I gulped. Do I really have to go through the warp panel?

"Are you nervous?" Kratos asked, sensing my fear.

"Well, I've never used one before, so… yeah, a little."

"You'll get used to it."

Sure, I'll get used to it. That was an awkward conversation.

I stepped onto the warp panel, and a split second later, we were in the seal room. It felt like my insides disappeared for a moment. Ugh. I sighed under my breath when I realized what was to come.

The Ktugach and two Ktugachlings. I made a little frown with my face. Seriously? How does that equal to a name?

"It's a video game. Everything's cool." Lance spoke.

"Really?" I looked at him, "No seriously, I can't even pronounce this thing without sounding stupid."

He merely laughed at me, sliding his silver-grey eyes closed when Raine suddenly burst out in all of her Ruin Mode glory.

"This place is also built with magitechonology! Absolutely fantastic!" She laughed, like the maniac she was. She reminds me of me sometimes, but yes, Raine, I get it. Please stop freaking me out.

The ange gardien that stood next to me made a face, "Careful, they're coming."

The ground started shaking like hell, and the Ktugach and its Ktugachlings appeared. Lloyd and Kratos went ahead to the Ktugach, while I protected Genis while he casted Aqua Edge.

As Genis' spell went off, one of the Ktugachlings went down.

The battle was fast; the adrenaline rushed through me like there was no tomorrow. I've never felt so tense before. I rushed toward the other Ktugachling, striking it with a quick slash and Falling Leaf, but it wasn't enough. It got back up just in time and I took a hit to the arm.

"Lene!" I heard Raine call.

"I'm fine!" I managed to that out before feeling the heat of the hit surge through my body. Pain, fire, everywhere. It hurt. It really hurt.

"Hold on, Lene. I'll deal with this." Lance closed his eyes and he placed his hands on mine like he did just outside the ruins.

I could see a magic circle being drawn in my mind's eye, and then I felt angry magic runes start to glow at my feet. I felt power coursing through my veins.

... Such immense power. I felt as if I could lose all control of myself with the amount of power that surged through me.

Power...

The young man's eyes dilated into solid black as he released the spell through me. "Dark Cross!"

Chains of darkness materialized around mine and Lance's hand as he threw the chain towards the Ktugachling, dragging it along the ground towards us and finishing off with a blast of black magic that striked across the monster in the shape of an 'X'.

It let out a ragged cry before the Ktugachling finally went down, and Kratos just dealt the final blow to the Ktugach with a fierce blow to the neck. I felt so weak after that spell Lance used to the point where I could barely stand. I could see his eye twitch slightly, a frown gracing his ghostly lips.

I saw the faint image of Efreet before the Summon Spirit disappeared… but there was something else in that altar… I couldn't really see.

_You, the Chosen of Regeneration, offer your prayers at the altar…_

God dammit, it's Remiel. That asshole. "…Yes, my lord."

She approached the altar, knelt down and began to pray, "Oh Goddess Martel, great protector and nurturer of the earth, grant me thy strength!"

The angel bastard descended from above. "Colette, my dear daughter, you have done well…" He murmured.

"Thank you… Fa…ther…"

Come on, Colette, everyone— okay not _everyone_ knew that Remiel isn't your father. He looks nothing like you! Besides the blond hair and all, but that's it. "The guardian of the seal has fallen, and the first seal has been released. Efreet will surely awaken soon." He paused for a moment before continuing his speech.

"In the name of Cruxis, I shall grant you the power of the angels."

"…Thank you, my lord."

Purple and pink feathers shot out of Colette's back, crystallizing to form wings that flapped softly, lifting her off the ground.

"The angel transformation will not be without pain," Remiel stated, "Yet, it is but for one night. Be strong and endure."

"I humbly accept this trail."

"The next seal lies far to the east, across the sea. Offer your prayers at that altar."

"Yes, Lord Remiel."

The angel before us left for the 'heavens', leaving a trail of gold translucent feathers in our wake.

Lloyd gaped in amazement as he took a closer look at the blonde, "Colette… has wings!"

"Thanks, captain obvious." Lance flicked his blue-turquoise hair at the apparently dumb brunet.

"But they're really pretty." I said, gazing at the blonde's purple-pink wings.

Tuning out the rest of Lloyd and Genis' conversation about Colette's very pretty wings, I wondered out aloud, "He said the next seal is across the ocean…"

"That means we're going to sail on a ship! That's so cool, I can't wait!" The red-clad dual swordsman cheered. Ah, the enthusiasm. How long did it last for this seal, anyway?

And if water is involved… I chuckled as I remembered that Raine hated the ocean, or water, in general.

Raine looked like she'd throw up anytime. "A ship… hmm. I wonder if there are any ships sailing with the way things are right now…"

"We should head to the coast to see what we can find."

All hail the almighty Kratos' word.

Just as we turned around to make our way back to the warp panel, the altar rumbled, a clash of voices could be heard, like a painful shriek. It is a girl's voice... slightly high-pitched, and something very evil about that chuckle she released from her lips.

"You will not leave."

* * *

><p><em>Alright guys. Please review!<em>


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